After donning helmets on Monday, dozens of elementary school students in American Canyon hopped on their bikes for a ride around the neighborhood — with an emphasis on safety.

“All right guys, line up,” said Casey Wedding, a bike instructor with Napa County Office of Education’s Safe Route to Schools program. “No passing!”

Wedding led 25 fourth-graders for a 45-minute bike ride around Canyon Oaks Elementary School and the new Vintage Ranch subdivision east of Highway 29.

Monday’s ride came at the end of a two-week training program during which Wedding taught a total of 180 fourth- and fifth-graders in six separate classes how to fix flat tires, adjust helmets, use hand signals to turn or stop on the road and obey traffic circulation signs at all times.

The Napa County Office of Education, which paid for the 37 bikes and helmets with a Caltrans-administered federal grant, chose Canyon Oaks primarily because the majority of students live less than a mile from campus, said David Seyms, who coordinates the program for the Napa County Office of Education. The bikes were purchased at wholesale price from The Hub in Napa.

Monday was the first time students left school grounds to ride in the community.

“They all did a good job,” Wedding said.

Canyon Oaks Principal Maren Rocca Hunt was thrilled to have the program at her school. “The kids had a blast,” she said.

Teachers and the fourth-graders who rode Monday morning with teachers Julie Meyer-Houston, Wedding and David Seyms, confirmed the principal’s assessment.

“Its fun,” said Mae Mae Banayat, 9.

Meyer-Houston said the program has inspired her to ride again. She added that she hopes the effort will change minds of parents near the school.

A recent survey of Canyon Oaks’ parents found that most would not allow their children to walk or ride to school, a fact that Wedding attributed to the proximity of busy Highway 29.

Meyer-Houston said she hopes Monday’s experience will encourage families to let students explore the community on their bikes.

“They got to see where they can ride safely,” she said.

Rocca Hunt, who has crossing guards posted nearby, said walking would be safer for everyone because there would be less traffic at Canyon Oaks.

Both Rocca Hunt and Wedding said they were surprised when about 30 fourth- and fifth-graders on campus said they did not know how to ride.

Some of the children participated in Monday’s ride after practicing for a week on campus.

Kids pick up riding quickly, Wedding said. “One girl learned in five minutes,” he added.

Wedding, with bikes and helmets, heads for Calistoga Elementary School Wednesday, where he plans to teach a new group of kids how to bike safely to school.

Early next year, Wedding will be at West Park Elementary School in Napa. Under the three-year, $490,000 Caltrans grant, the program may be taught to as many as seven schools during this school year.